Dear Poll: Do You Read Romance Novels?

July 30, 2008

We all have our preferred guilty pleasures. As you know, I love The Bachelor, and funny enough, many of my girlfriends profess a weakness for romance novels. Though I'm not a big reader of bodice rippers, I definitely understand how the stolen glances, melodramatic plot lines, and steamy love scenes could be entertaining, as either a guilty pleasure or just a pleasure. What about you? Are you into reading romance novels?

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92 Comments

Barbra Novac 4 years

Well, my favourite romance writers are Jane Austen, Emily Bronte, Charlotte Bronte, Daphne Du Maurier and William Shakespeare. It is true, they all have predictable plot lines (predictable even in their day) except for Wuthering Heights, which i guess you would include in paranormal as a genre today, he he. I liked what cnlew says above. I write erotic romance, and I find that my readers are extremely intelligent women (and some men), who like to use these kinds of novels for down time. They enjoy the easy predictability of these novels, in the same way someone might enjoy an episode of Friends, or X files, or Law and Order. However, many of them don't like to watch television. They'd rather use their brain a little more in their down time. I write under a pseudonym, and I write these in a formulaic manner. These intelligent, educated women, don't always want to be challenged by their romance novels. Sometimes they just want to chill.

Barbra Novac 4 years

Well, my favourite romance writers are Jane Austen, Emily Bronte, Charlotte Bronte, Daphne Du Maurier and William Shakespeare. It is true, they all have predictable plot lines (predictable even in their day) except for Wuthering Heights, which i guess you would include in paranormal as a genre today, he he.I liked what cnlew says above. I write erotic romance, and I find that my readers are extremely intelligent women (and some men), who like to use these kinds of novels for down time. They enjoy the easy predictability of these novels, in the same way someone might enjoy an episode of Friends, or X files, or Law and Order. However, many of them don't like to watch television. They'd rather use their brain a little more in their down time. I write under a pseudonym, and I write these in a formulaic manner. These intelligent, educated women, don't always want to be challenged by their romance novels. Sometimes they just want to chill.

juicylove 4 years

i dont now if anyones said this already but Nicholas Sparks (The Notebook) writes really well and its not written by a woman so its not SUPER cheesy. maybe a little bit. i've read the notebook, message in a bottle and have bought but not read yet Nights in Rodanthe. i just realized those are all movies. anyway i read biographies mostly.

juicylove 4 years

Isista 4 years

I definitely have standards when reading romance novels, but I do enjoy reading them from time to time. It sounds like a lot of people have very high standards for what they read, and that is great. But it seems like every once in awhile, can't you stand for something not to be incredibly thought provoking? Isn't it nice every once in awhile to get away from reality and just lose yourself in a good romance? I see no fault with that lol.

Isista 4 years

ayuninur 4 years

Occasionally

ayuninur 4 years

Occasionally

lildorothyparker 4 years

I think we should draw a line between the romance genre and Harlequin-esque novels. There is nothing wrong with reading a well written romance novel.

lildorothyparker 4 years

I think we should draw a line between the romance genre and Harlequin-esque novels. There is nothing wrong with reading a well written romance novel.

bengalspice 4 years

btw ... those people who argue that reading romance novels will undermine having a degree in English or Literature ... need to get off their high horse. There's nothing disgraceful about reading this stuff.

bengalspice 4 years

But you can't make the judgement that a romance writer isn't going to end up being a classic ... I'm sure people in Austen's time didn't realize she was going to continue being such a hit now.Just like you don't know if generations from now people are going to look back and think Nora Roberts is a classic. Some day someone might think Bollywood Nights by Shobhaa De is a classic ... even though it really is scandalous now, but well written.

bengalspice 4 years

But you can't make the judgement that a romance writer isn't going to end up being a classic ... I'm sure people in Austen's time didn't realize she was going to continue being such a hit now. Just like you don't know if generations from now people are going to look back and think Nora Roberts is a classic. Some day someone might think Bollywood Nights by Shobhaa De is a classic ... even though it really is scandalous now, but well written.

krrn 4 years

jane austen is a romance writer but she has stood the test of time because of the context and time period she was writing in and because all of her characters went against what was expected of them.. that was considered scandalous at the time. so that is what makes her books different. i also never said that NO romance writers would be considered classics. i said that i'm sure a few will but most will not. jane austen is a good example of a romance writer but she is a rarity in the world of literature.

northofantastic 4 years

LadyLibertine, I'm a big fan of the Black Dagger Brotherhood as well! That's actually the series I was alluding to in my comment. You've got good taste. ;)

bengalspice 4 years

Speaking of the romance novel formula ... did anyone feel that Eat, Pray, Love read like a romance novel?

bengalspice 4 years

Um ... I'd hate to break it to you, krrn ... but Jane Austen is considered a romance writer ... and last I checked Pride & Prejudice along with the rest of her works are considered Classics.

krrn 4 years

i don't know why people get so heated over this. to each her own. like cnlew said, if you want a book where you don't have to think that much than go for it. i personally just like to read things that make me think a lot or move me in a big way, books where the characters are really dynamic and there are so many more emotions than love involved. that's just my personal preference. i like reading books that i think about for a long time or even impact my life in some way. jammi, if you have to pretend to like classic literature than don't do it. i would have to pretend to like romances so it's all a matter of opinion. i know i said i've never read romance novels but i've read enough of some to know what they're like. my mom has been reading them her whole life.i never once said that literature was better than romance novels; i just stated why i personally don't like romance novels. i'm allowed to have that opinion.and also, mary shelley's frankenstein is considered great for more than just being a suspenseful novel. it's one of few novels that is truly considered a masterpiece because of the way it's written (suspense and everything else) and the way the characters are developed. it's incredible.yes a lot of contemporary writers will be the classics of later on but i hate to break it to you: most of them won't be romantic novels. maybe the really great ones but there are just too many of them for the genre to be considered ground-breaking.

krrn 4 years

i don't know why people get so heated over this. to each her own. like cnlew said, if you want a book where you don't have to think that much than go for it. i personally just like to read things that make me think a lot or move me in a big way, books where the characters are really dynamic and there are so many more emotions than love involved. that's just my personal preference. i like reading books that i think about for a long time or even impact my life in some way. jammi, if you have to pretend to like classic literature than don't do it. i would have to pretend to like romances so it's all a matter of opinion. i know i said i've never read romance novels but i've read enough of some to know what they're like. my mom has been reading them her whole life. i never once said that literature was better than romance novels; i just stated why i personally don't like romance novels. i'm allowed to have that opinion. and also, mary shelley's frankenstein is considered great for more than just being a suspenseful novel. it's one of few novels that is truly considered a masterpiece because of the way it's written (suspense and everything else) and the way the characters are developed. it's incredible. yes a lot of contemporary writers will be the classics of later on but i hate to break it to you: most of them won't be romantic novels. maybe the really great ones but there are just too many of them for the genre to be considered ground-breaking.

lilxmissxmolly 4 years

just like any genre, there are good ones and bad ones. to each her own. i like all kinds of books so i've read a few that were good and a few that weren't. i don't really think, though, that you can just generalize and call the whole genre trash just because its not for you, or you didn't like some that you read.

missdiorluxe 4 years

I love to read many kinds of books, and I do like romance novels, as long as they are not over dramatic. Lisa Kleypas has great novels, I will read anything of hers.

CaterpillarGirl 4 years

I read them, BUT i have standards! You wont catch me reading a "bodice ripper" or some story about a widower with a heart of gold and a huge bulge in his pants....I read romance novels that have substance. Best ones?Charlaine Harris southern vampire series, the Merry Gentry series (erotica) sherrilyn Kenyon

CaterpillarGirl 4 years

I read them, BUT i have standards! You wont catch me reading a "bodice ripper" or some story about a widower with a heart of gold and a huge bulge in his pants....I read romance novels that have substance. Best ones? Charlaine Harris southern vampire series, the Merry Gentry series (erotica) sherrilyn Kenyon

cnlew 4 years

QUOTE "I take issue with romance writers (both men and women) because they offer nothing of value to the literary world. "Not every book you read needs to be profoundly thought provoking. And that's precisely why I love trashy silly cheap romance novels. I read the harlequin ones, have about 100 of them, and get 4 new ones every month in the mail.I don't read them for their intellectual or literary value...I have other authors that I read for those purposes. But when I can't sleep, or wanna lay by the pool with a fruity drink eyeing the pool boy, or at the beach with a cold beer watching the cabana boy adjust umbrellas, there is nothing better than a little romance escape. Sometimes I don't wanna "think" about what I'm reading...Reading should be fun. It's an escape from everyday life into a different world. The romance "novels" I read are at times ridiculous, and always predictable, and sometimes a bit smutty. My bf refers to them as "book porn"...SO. What's wrong with a little shameless escapism every now and then.Poke fun, call me stupid or uneducated, even un-enlightened or silly for my choice of fluff reading material...I'm still going to read them and enjoy them. I'll tip my fruity drink to you next time I open one up by the pool.

cnlew 4 years

QUOTE "I take issue with romance writers (both men and women) because they offer nothing of value to the literary world. " Not every book you read needs to be profoundly thought provoking. And that's precisely why I love trashy silly cheap romance novels. I read the harlequin ones, have about 100 of them, and get 4 new ones every month in the mail. I don't read them for their intellectual or literary value...I have other authors that I read for those purposes. But when I can't sleep, or wanna lay by the pool with a fruity drink eyeing the pool boy, or at the beach with a cold beer watching the cabana boy adjust umbrellas, there is nothing better than a little romance escape. Sometimes I don't wanna "think" about what I'm reading... Reading should be fun. It's an escape from everyday life into a different world. The romance "novels" I read are at times ridiculous, and always predictable, and sometimes a bit smutty. My bf refers to them as "book porn"...SO. What's wrong with a little shameless escapism every now and then. Poke fun, call me stupid or uneducated, even un-enlightened or silly for my choice of fluff reading material...I'm still going to read them and enjoy them. I'll tip my fruity drink to you next time I open one up by the pool.

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